Another coffee we currently have with a similar flavor profile is from Fazenda Monte Alegre in Sao Paulo, Brasil.  Like the wonderful stuff from El Borbollon, this too is in low supply.  It’s priced a little high compared to our other Brasil, but with good reason.

Keep your eye out for a new washed coffee from the Sidamo region of Ethiopia coming to our web shop soon!

It has been bought by new owners, the exterior has been repainted, including the cup sign, awnings, and a single logo identity has been established.

Their espresso machine went down recently, and they were unable to provide you with our delicious Black Torpedo espresso.  This was absolutely terrible timing for them.  You see, they had chosen last week for their Grand Opening to showcase the changes that have been made.

Well, they feel terrible about it, and they have decided to give this Grand Opening thing another chance.  From tomorrow (thursday, April 19th) through next thursday (April 26th) they are continuing the Grand Opening.

Everything is 25% off.

This is a limited time offering, so take advantage while you can by supporting the only shop serving the best espresso in Plainview, TX.

You can still find our amazing coffees at the places you are used to, so don’t worry!  We are not disappearing, dissolving, or going away.. we are simply relocating.

My wife and I are originally from the Dallas area, and I am looking forward to working to helping to build the specialty coffee scene in Dallas, just like I did in Lubbock.

We are hoping to be able to build a small training facility in our new space over time.  We will keep this blog up to date with AJ Coffee Company news.

Dallas, watch out.  A new coffee pro roasting up amazingness to order is coming to your town soon.

A big THANK YOU to everyone in West Texas who helped to make our initial launch, and growth stage, a success.   We look forward to building upon what you’ve enabled us to accomplish.

Jason Haeger
Founder – AJ Coffee Company

Andy asks,

Is it really necessary to pull a shot right after cleaning the group head on my espresso machine?  It seems kind of unnecessary to dirty it up right after cleaning it.  Why do they say to do this?

Good question, Andy.  The long standing belief was that a machine could be “too” clean, and that the bare metals would impart a metallic taste to the espresso.  The fix for this was to “season” the machine with a throw-away shot of espresso to leave a thin coating of coffee oils as a buffer for the next shots, until the next cleaning.

What many had done instead, was to simply let the machine remain clean over night, and use your “sink shots” (or throw-away shots) as seasoning shots when dialing in your espresso grinder the next morning.  This is good practice, and this is what I recommend.

Whether or not the myth of a machine that is “too” clean is true is a topic of debate.  Some believe that the first shot behaves as a pre-heating practice to get the group head to the proper brewing temperature.  If this is true, then, theoretically, a 30-second backflush with a blind filterbasket (or backflush disk) should do the trick.  Every machine is different in the way the group head is saturated with hot water, so take this with a healthy dose of salt.

In summary:
DO pull a throw-away shot to “season” your machine.  However, WAIT to do it until you are dialing in your grinder for the next use.

That’s all for this issue of :

We are proud to announce that we were able to get a limited supply of coffee from the Musasa Cooperative in Rwanda, as well as an equally limited supply of coffee from Buf Cafe also in Rwanda.  The crops this year are absolutely amazing, and considering the fact that coffee is helping to improve the quality of life for the farming families who rely on it for survival coupled with the fact that these coffees are, well, AMAZING, the price tag is noticeably higher.

We still think, however, that this new “high”er price is exceedingly cheap for such outstanding coffees.

We will be introducing them one at a time, and first up is the Musasa Cooperative, which we identified as the better of the two on the cupping table (but only marginally).  Juicy, tropical fruit, clean floral notes, and black tea with a consistent mouthfeel at every temperature for the duration of its enjoyment.  HIGHLY recommend, and a steal for the quality that this coffee portrays.

We are also extremely pleased to bring back the wonderfully rich and complex natural coffee from Fazenda Rodomunho in the Cerrado region in the state of Minas Gerais in Brasil.  It is the backbone to our Black Torpedo espresso, and is a joy when  heavy body with chocolate, nuts, and a hint of spice are just what the morning ordered.

The last coffee on our short list of fresh arrivals is from the Páez Indigenous Reserve in the Department of Meta in Colombia.  This coffee is amazingly heavy, with a deep body and ever-changing spice notes of licorice, anise, clove, and cedar.  The ecological practices of this farming community of 40 families is absolutely stunning.  I’d like to encourage you to read more about it by clicking on the link above.

Our Christmas Blend will be available through January 15th, or until supplies run out, so if you’re running low from guests drinking your stock, fret not!  More is still available.

2012 is just around the corner, and we have always been fans of matching coffees with the spirit of whatever season is upon us, and this year, we feel like the perfect coffee to usher in the new year is:


 

Finca San Luis from Costa Rica

It’s clean, bright, sweet, and straightforward…
This is exactly what we hope the year 2012 will turn out to be.

We are back roasting in full force this week, so get your orders in so that we can get them to you!

BONUS!  

Didn’t get what you asked for?

Tell you what.. you can exchange the money you received from returning the unwanted items for what you REALLY wanted: a bag of fresh roasted AJ Coffee.

To make the deal even sweeter, we’re giving you 15% off!

Just use the coupon code: GiftExchange
when checking out through our web shop.

AJ Coffee Co is now on:

It’s finally here.  Our Christmas Blend for 2011 is now available!  Last year, we released our Holiday Blend as a Moka-Java comprised of 50% Sumatra Blue Batak Tarbarita Peaberry and 50% Ethiopia Jimma Nigusie Lemma DP.

As much as we loved it, we felt it was time for a change.  The theme this year is fruit, with the motif being less about comfort, and more about celebration.  The roasterie smelled like a Juicy Fruit™ factory after roasting a rather large order of this year’s Christmas Blend for one of our accounts.  It is sweet, with lots of tropical fruit on the nose.

This year, it is comprised of 50% El Salvador El Borbollon and 50% Ethiopia Sidama Ardi, and it is delicious.  (you can find both in our web shop)

We’ve included a recipe that is a slight modification of Irish Coffee that we feel works exceptionally well with this year’s blend.  Click the image above to see it!

Is clicking on the web shop link not convenient enough?  We’ve thought of that too.  We hope you love this year’s Christmas Blend as much as we do.  Enjoy!

Click image to go to web article.

We’re proud to be in good company in this article with Oak Cliff Coffee Roasters and Cuvee Coffee in which Jason Cohen gives a brief pep talk to coffee lovers in Texas on how to improve their morning cup of Joe.

Look for it on Page 125 in the December 2011 issue, available now!

httpv://youtu.be/0GkYTY_5thk

Thanks to Mercanta for sharing this first.